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Pragmatic Kansans -- and the state has long been full of them -- will weigh whether to turn over state government to a Midwestern mini-Trump or to step toward a more moderate middle and chose either Kelly or the independent Greg Orman (if his signatures clear to make the ballot). It will be a decision that brings a whole other set of considerations about splitting the vote.

Conservative Kansans -- and they are not easily categorized -- have much to consider. For Republicans, the choice will be between party loyalty and the welfare of their state.

And for those who don't know, the fortunes of Kansas have always owed more to the outward-looking attitudes of its people than the insular impulses fostered by Trump and Kobach.

In Gov. Harvey's time, after the Civil War, the state burnished its' agricultural image. And the railroad was completed through the state and beyond, linking to Denver.

The need for farm laborers and railroad workers is likely why Harvey is said to have "urged that all means be used to forward immigration," according to a history written by an early secretary of the Kansas State Historical Society.

Some things don't change. Kansas is still a heavily agricultural state, and it is also home to growing biotech and animal health industries. It needs highly trained workers, and it needs global trading partners. An erratic and unhinged president -- and a governor to match -- aren't likely to be good for Kansans and their enterprises. They don't have to be raising crops or studying the sciences for that to be true.

A two-term governor, Harvey was a captain for the Union Army, a surveyor and farmer by trade and had a lengthy political career that eventually led him to a U.S. Senate seat. Harvey was known as "Old Honesty."

Honesty. How sad that the word almost seems something of bygone era.

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(Readers can reach Mary Sanchez at msanchezcolumn@gmail.com and follow her on Twitter @msanchezcolumn.)

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